Hudson Valley - Albany NY

We will be visiting the area in mid-September. Headquartering in Albany and driving (slowly) south to West Point.
Off the beaten track is great and we will have plenty of time.
Thanks,
Ben

Extremely good question. Come to think of it, I can't really think of that many "must stop" locations along the way, at least something that fits under "Roadfood." It's been a good six years since I've really been to the area; I went to school in Poughkeepsie but have lived in Houston ever since.

A more expensive option is the American Bounty restaurant at the Culinary Institute of America. They have other restaurants there, but the American Bounty is the restaurant the students intern at right before graduation, so they are definitely more experienced. If you do decide to go, call NOW to reserve as it fills up fast. The campus is beautiful as well.

Also, if you are interested in wineries, try the Millbrook winery. I've never been but their wines are fabulous and I've heard the tour is wonderful.

I do remember going to the Eveready diner in Hyde Park quite a bit. I always thought it was better than the standard 24 hour diner fare so popular in the area. But then again, my memory may be distorted as I was used to campus cafeteria food at the time...

Sorry I can't think of anything in Albany proper. It's not a great food city at all. There are (better) options in Saratoga Springs, but that's going the opposite direction from West Point.

You may want to set the wayback machine for:


http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=743

A good restauant, tavern with a varied menu and mostly Italian food is Ralph's Tavern on Hwy 5 between Albany and Colonie. Gets pretty crowded on bowling nights so get there early.

The hotel Thayer on the West Point reservation is an elegant old place- can't speak for the food, but the bar is a great place to spend an hour.
BTW West Point is a pain to enter since 9/11 - search and research you and your car.

From Newburgh you should take the old Stormking Highway to West point- it is a spectacular ride along the face of Stormking Mountain.
don't know of any places along that road- there are some restaurants, but I don't know them.

In Newburgh, a really shabby rundown old river city, thay have re-habbed the waterfront and now have four or five restaurants with great views of Newburgh Bay and so-so food- but worth a try. Uptown Newburgh, along Broadway there are a number of ethnic restaurants, they come and go so I can't recommend any. We really liked an Equadorian place about midtown, but it's gone. Around midtown, about two blocks west of the intersection of 9W and Broadway is Anna's - a great place for a hot Texas wiener, chile, and hamburgers, and Greek desserts. If you like chocolate, The Chocolatiere an excellent candy maker is just about across Broadway from Anna's. The Hudson Valley Coffee Roaster is another few blocks west on Broadway - great selection of freshly roasted coffees and good soup and sandwiches under the charge of a CIA graduate chef . Out by the Thruway intersection is YOBO a very nice Oriental restaurant- specializing in Indonesian, and Korean dishes.

It's somewhat out of your way, but if you take rt 32 south from Newburgh you will pass a nice German place - The Black Forest, and a little Mexican place that we like another couple of miles south . Also, Gasho, one of those Japanese steak houses where they throw knives and dishes around is along that road - a lot of fun once or twice. And just before you get to Rt 6, the road to West Point, you will come upon a huge discount Mall - people come from all over the world to shop there- need I say more...

If you get off the Thruway at exit 18, New Paltz has P&Gs Bar and Restaurant - good soups, and hamburgers- a popular and old, and famous local hangout. Down Main Street by the Walkill river is a brew pub, the Gilded Otter, I like their freshly brewed beer and ale - the food is mediocre ( other roadfooders tell me I have it backward, the beer is so-so and the food is good). West of New Paltz is the Bavarian Inn, you might want to try a "Gunksburger" there- it is very popular locally and you can watch the rock climbers from their parking lot. A neat expensive place to stay, Minnewaska Lodge, is just across the road.
Lombardi's, a couple of miles south of the intersection of Rts 44/55 and 299 is an excellent Italian restaurant- recommend the manicotti-
avoid the house wine. Back in New Paltz, Gadaleto's Seafood is very good- part of a fish market. Also The Main Course in a little strip mall on Main Street serves light fare that tends to be quite spicy- I recommend it.

Kingston's waterfront is also undergoing re-hab and there are a number of good places to eat there. We like a new Mexican place, Rositas - neat comfortable patio on the water. the Hudson River Maritime museum is next door- worth a visit.

The hamlet of Highland, 15 miles south of Kingston on 9W , has an excellent breakfast and lunch place, the Highland Cafe, where a CIA trained chef puts out imaginative and very good dishes - omelettes and French toast. Also in Highland, down on the river, is Mariner's Harbor with a deck for lunch and dinner with great views of the river - the food is mediocre- stick with things like popcorn shrimp. A few miles south of Highland on Rt 9w is the Ship's Lantern Inn - upscale, old fashioned continental cuisine- excellent - reservations usually needed.

For about $40 each you can drive up to the famous Monhonk Mountain House just west of New Paltz, get a great lunch in their grand old dining room, have afternoon tea and crumpets, see magnificent gardens, sit on the porch and feed the trout, paddle a canoe around the lake, climb up to the lookout tower and have a great all-day experience sharing the world of the rich and famous.

There are a couple of good places in a devoid culinary wasteland such as Albany. Fannie's Italian kitchen up in Latham has decent Italian food. Also Grandma's restaurant on Central Avenue in Colonie has good homestyle food and great pies. Peaches Cafe near the crossroads mall has great breakfasts and The Big House Brewery in Albany has slightly better than average (for the eastcoast) craft beer.

Finally I've heard great things about Bob and Ron's Fish Fry, but unforunately have not tried the place myself. They were closed for fourth of july when I visited Albany last.

A suggestion for an "out of the way" place would be the Country Inn located in Krumville NY. In the middle of nowhere, this establishment is known worldwide for it's extensive beer list. There are unbelievably 500 beers from all corners of the world, some of which are not usually found in the U.S. Each beer has it's own sign which dominate one entire wall of the bar. The Country Inn has recently been taken over by a new owner , who has now added high quality cuisine to to go along with the beers. The place is actually a small farmhouse located next to a scenic lake. You can reach it from Exit 19 on the NYS Thruway. Take route 209 South about 10 miles to Route 2. Take Route 2(small winding country road) about 5 miles. (House with a small sign along the road). I believe they are closed on Monday and Tuesday, but are open at 4pm on WED,Thur, and Friday. On weekends they open at noon.(but you can only get pub food before 5pm). Since the place is quite small, it would be a good idea to get there early.